I checked out the Ship Creek area in north Anchorage today. At the mouth of the creek, ice was flowing past in the inlet as the tide changed. Big chunks of ice lay on the tidal flats. Other than the ever-present (but not officially countable in AK) Rock Pigeons, the only bird was a single Common Raven that flew low over the road.

Up the creek a bit where the footbridge goes across I walked up along the creek hoping for an American Dipper. I was not disappointed. As I peered through the snow-covered branches at the rapidly flowing water, a single dipper was swimming madly around, mostly underwater, only rarely hopping up on the ice along the river. Brrrr!

There were also a couple of Black-billed Magpies, and two Common Ravens flew over (photo looks almost like the stylized birds we used to draw as kids).

I thought that would be it but on my walk back along the creek to my car I saw two Common Mergansers in the icy water, their beaks adding almost the only bright color today.